Retrieval Practice: Primary by Kate Jones

goodreads.com · Unknown · 2025-10-21

affectionate 4.00

The book offers a unique perspective on English parish churches, written by a stonemason with hands-on experience. It's not an academic work but a personal chronicle filled with insights and affection for the craftsmanship of these historic buildings.

Church Going: A Stonemason’s Guide to the Churches of the British Isles by Andrew Ziminski stands out among the many books on English parish churches. Written by an experienced stonemason, the book brings a craftsman's eye and a deep affection for the subject. It's not an academic work but rather a personal chronicle of the author's decades-long love affair with these buildings. The book is arranged chronologically in short, digestible sections that feel like musings from a site notebook. While it may not offer new information to specialists, it provides a fresh perspective and a wealth of insightful observations. The author's criticism is balanced with a clear fondness for the craftsmanship and the generations of craftsmen who came before him. It's a book that will appeal to anyone with a passion for English churches and their history.

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Ziminski has something of an advantage. As an experienced stonemason he has actually worked on many of the buildings he writes about, and he brings the insight of a craftsman and the eye of a professional to even those he hasn’t personally worked on.

He isn’t without criticism of the church-builders of the British Isles — the occasional dodgy timber, poor materials, and less than perfect stone- work — but when it does occur it is with an overt fondness and understanding; he’s been there too.

It is indeed a chronicle of a decades-long love affair with English churches.

abebooks.co.uk · Unknown · 2025-10-21

intriguing 4.00

Andrew Ziminski's 'Church Going' offers a unique and eclectic exploration of Britain's parish churches, blending architectural history, theology, and personal anecdotes. The book is valuable for its insights into how churches and church history are perceived in modern Britain, though it deviates from traditional historical views.

Andrew Ziminski's 'Church Going' is a fascinating guide to the churches of the British Isles, written by a stonemason with decades of experience. The book is organized thematically, covering everything from spires to fonts, and is interspersed with personal anecdotes from Ziminski's visits to various churches. It serves as a primer on architectural history, theology, and modern religious practice, offering a joyful and informative read for anyone interested in church crawling. For historians, the book is particularly interesting as it illuminates how churches and church history are understood in 21st-century Britain. Ziminski's approach is eclectic and spiritual, deviating from the traditional Protestant view of British history. He follows Eamon Duffy's positive account of Catholic Christendom and assumes that Christianity is in terminal decline, hoping that these special places will be treasured by future religious faiths.

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Ziminski’s is, to be sure, an eclectic approach. His book does not seek to present a single, coherent analysis.

It is a volume that will be of real value to anyone unsure what a parvise is (a room above a porch).

He hopes that such special places will be treasured by ‘whatever version of religious faith comes along next’.

m.facebook.com · Unknown · 2025-10-21

engaging 4.00

The book is a follow-up to Ziminski's acclaimed work, offering a detailed guide to the churches of the British Isles. The reviewer appreciates the author's expertise and the book's engaging prose, though it occasionally feels breathless due to the rapid shifts between locations and details.

Andrew Ziminski's new volume, 'Church Going: A stonemason’s guide to the churches of the British Isles,' is a follow-up to his well-received 'The Stonemason: A history of building Britain.' The book is organized around a generic church, starting with the churchyard, then the exterior, and finally the interior. This structure allows Ziminski to highlight individual features and share examples from churches he has worked on across the country. The reviewer finds the prose vigourous and engaging, with a wealth of information about various church features, from Sheela-na-Gigs to Angel Roofs. However, the rapid shifts between different locations and details can sometimes feel breathless, making the reading experience a bit dizzying. Despite this, the book offers a lot to learn and concludes on a positive note, suggesting that these churches will continue to be used for another thousand years, regardless of the version of religious faith that comes next.

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This new volume is the follow-up to his acclaimed The Stonemason: A history of building Britain in 2020, and the vigour and wonder of his prose remains beguiling.

It does inevitably have a slightly breathless quality, an occasional dizziness as you move from one paragraph to the next from a detached bell tower at Clonmacnoise, on the rugged banks of the River Shannon, on the site of one of Ireland’s greatest Celtic monasteries, to the gigantic teepee from the 1260s which adjoins St Augustine’s, Brookland, in gentler Kent.

I suspect [these churches] will continue to be used for another thousand years, for whatever version of religious faith comes along next.

Retrieval Practice: Primary

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